Tension-mounted pole caddies are popular supporting devices. Used vertically, they can support, for example, lighting fixtures, shelving units, and the like, while horizontal mounted poles are used for garment display, window coverings, shower curtains, and the like. Tension-mounted pole caddies can be erected and secured in a minimum of time with little mechanical ability, and are versatile because they can be located nearly anywhere, spanning the distance between two surfaces, like a floor and ceiling. It is the tension of the device, exerted between the surfaces, which provides the stability to maintain the pole in position.
Most basically, a typical tension-mounted pole caddy includes a first pole having a bottom foot to contact and grip a first lower surface with a smaller diameter second pole telescopically housed in and extending from the first pole. The second pole also has a foot which is intended to contact a second upper surface. The two poles are usually spring-biased outward relative to one another. One problem with such a design is that the device is either adjustable over a small span and/or the expansion force of the first and second poles can be damaging to the support surfaces.
In operation, the rubber foot on the lower/first pole of the spring-biased prior art device is placed on a desired lower surface (e.g., a floor). The user then pushes on the upper/second pole, against the force of the spring, to temporarily collapse and telescope the second pole into the first pole. With the second pole so held, the device is tilted into as near to a vertical orientation as possible. The second pole is then carefully released to allow the internal spring of the device to cause expansion until the rubber foot of the second pole contacts the upper surface (e.g., a ceiling).
As the telescoping second pole may be positioned above the middle of the pole caddy at a considerable height, short users may encounter considerable difficulty in attempting to orient the spring-biased device. Also, its strength of being held in a vertical position is directly dependent on the strength of the contained spring. Yet, the stronger the spring, which will hold the pole caddy in place, the more difficult the installation since to perform the installation the spring is first manually compressed until selectively released. Accordingly, another problem with the spring-biased design is that the installation is not always easy because the user must try to compress the two poles, against the strong outward bias of the spring, and, at the same time, try to place the pole into a vertical orientation.